Gmail Can Receive 50MB Attachments

You can now open larger files in Gmail. Google increased the limit to 50 MB. The sending limit is still 25 MB. According to Engadget, Google Drive can be used to send larger files.

Email was first used in the early 1960s. Here’s an overview from Wikipedia:

The AUTODIN network, first operational in 1962, provided a message service between 1,350 terminals, handling 30 million messages per month, with an average message length of approximately 3,000 characters. Autodin was supported by 18 large computerized switches, and was connected to the United States General Services Administration Advanced Record System, which provided similar services to roughly 2,500 terminals. By 1968, AUTODIN linked more than 300 sites in several countries.

With the introduction of MIT’s Compatible Time-Sharing System (CTSS) in 1961, multiple users could log in to a central system from remote dial-up terminals, and store and share files on the central disk. Informal methods of using this to pass messages were developed and expanded…

In the early 1980s, networked personal computers on LANs became increasingly important. Server-based systems similar to the earlier mainframe systems were developed. Again, these systems initially allowed communication only between users logged into the same server infrastructure.